1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a cleaning apparatus of a vehicle lamp. Specifically, the present invention relates to the cleaning apparatus in which a nozzle cover is prevented from unfastening from a nozzle portion.
2. Background Art
There is a cleaning apparatus which is movable to protrude from and retract into an opening formed in a vehicle body or a bumper, and cleans a front cover of a vehicle head lamp.
Such a cleaning apparatus (for example, refer to JP-A-2006-335273) includes: a nozzle portion having jet nozzles for jetting a cleaning liquid; a nozzle cover for covering the nozzle portion from a front side; a piston connected to the nozzle portion; and a cylinder movably supporting the piston. An opening formed in a vehicle body or a bumper is closed by the nozzle cover at the time when the cleaning apparatus is housed. The nozzle portion and a part of the piston protrude forward from the opening, and a cleaning liquid is jetted from the jet nozzles to clean the front cover at the time of cleaning.
In the cleaning apparatus, at the time when the cleaning apparatus is housed, in order to ensure the design property of a vehicle, and prevent entering of moisture, dust, etc. via the opening from the outside, an outer peripheral portion of the nozzle cover is brought into close contact with a peripheral edge of the opening, or covers the opening.
Meanwhile, the cleaning apparatus is often used in a cold region, etc. in order to melt snow or ice adhered to a front cover of the head lamp to secure a good field of view. Accordingly, depending on weather conditions when the cleaning apparatus is used, the outer peripheral portion of the nozzle cover may be frozen. If a part of nozzle cover sticks to the peripheral edge of the opening due to the freezing, and when the nozzle portion tends to move forward along with the piston, a force in a direction in which the nozzle cover is inclined with respect to the movement direction may be given to the nozzle cover.
However, in the cleaning apparatus of a vehicle lamp described in JP-A-2006-335273, a front end of the nozzle portion is connected to only a middle portion of the nozzle cover. Therefore, when the force in the above inclined direction is given, the nozzle cover is inclined with respect to the nozzle portion with a connecting portion between the nozzle portion and the nozzle cover as a fulcrum. As a result, there is a possibility that the nozzle cover may be unfastened from the nozzle portion, or the connecting portion between the nozzle cover and the nozzle portion may be damaged.